Opposition to plans for a breastfeeding bench in a Dublin park has ‘really surprised’ the councillor behind it.
Green Party Councillor Lyn Hagin Meade has called for the bench to be installed in Dodder Valley Park in Firhouse.
The specially-designed bench features soft padding and a raised back to help feeding mothers.
Councillor Meade proposed the motion last week - and this afternoon told Moncrieff the idea has worked elsewhere.
"I was really surprised that there was any dissent with this motion," she said.
"Breastfeeding rates are some of the lowest in the world in Ireland; 62.3% of women in 2020 started breastfeeding.
"I thought perhaps if we had a breastfeeding bench - they've been very popular abroad - that we could encourage women to breastfeed in public, and feel that they had a good safe space to do that".
'A little bit of privacy'
Councillor Meade said the bench is different to a regular bench in a number of ways.
"It offers a cushioned seating area, it has a single seat so that there's a little bit of privacy for breastfeeding mothers", she said.
"I didn't particularly specify one type of breastfeeding bench, but there are actually quite a few numbers of different breastfeeding benches available".
She said this worked so well in Belgium, they now have several in place.
These benches were originally put [in place], in 2021, in Flanders in Belgium, for Breastfeeding Awareness Week," she said.
"It was only meant to be a trial, but they were so popular that they actually then put all over Brussels.
"They have an app that they're connected to, so mothers can find out where the nearest bench is so they can use it".
'Encourage and empower'
Councillor Meade said she had "some great support" for her proposal, but also some objections.
"There was also some points raised that you could breastfeed everywhere - breastfeeding is something that we as mothers have had to do, everywhere all the time.
"The point of this motion was to show that breastfeeding was something that we need to encourage and empower, and we need to give some space in the public realm to breastfeeding.
"Another argument was regarding vandalism, and I countered that by saying that we already deal with anti-social behaviour in council spaces [and] in public spaces - but it doesn't stop us putting in resources," she added.
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